Wilhelm von Humboldt
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| - | The '''linguistic relativity''' principle, or the '''Sapir-Whorf hypothesis''' is the idea that differences in the way [[language]]s encode cultural and cognitive categories affect the way people think, so that speakers of different languages think and behave differently because of it. A strong version of the hypothesis holds that language determines thought and that linguistic categories limit and determine cognitive categories. A weaker version states that linguistic categories and usage influence thought and certain kinds of non-linguistic behaviour. | + | '''Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand''' [[Freiherr]] '''von Humboldt''' (22 June 1767 – 8 April 1835) was a [[Germans|German]] [[philosopher]], government functionary, [[diplomat]], and founder of [[Humboldt Universität]]. He is especially remembered as a [[Linguistics|linguist]] who made important contributions to the philosophy of language and to the theory and practice of education. In particular, he is widely recognized as having been the architect of the [[Prussian education system]] which was used as a model for education systems in countries such as the [[United States]] and [[Japan]]. |
| - | The idea was first clearly expressed by 19th century thinkers, such as [[Wilhelm von Humboldt]] who saw language as the expression of the spirit of a nation. The early 20th century school of American Anthropology headed by [[Franz Boas]] and [[Edward Sapir]] also embraced the idea. Sapir's student [[Benjamin Lee Whorf]] came to be seen as the primary proponent of the hypothesis, because he published observations of how he perceived linguistic differences to have consequences in human cognition and behaviour. Whorf's ideas were widely criticised, and [[Roger Brown (psychologist)|Roger Brown]] and [[Eric Lenneberg]] decided to put them to the test. They reformulated Whorf's principle of linguistic relativity as a testable hypothesis, now called the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, and conducted experiments designed to find out whether [[color perception]] varies between speakers of languages that classified colors differently. As the study of the universal nature of human language and cognition came in to focus in the 1960s the idea of linguistic relativity fell out of favor. A 1969 study by [[Brent Berlin]] and [[Paul Kay]] showed that color terminology is subject to universal semantic constraints, and the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis was seen as completely discredited. | + | Humboldt was born in [[Potsdam]], [[Margraviate of Brandenburg]], and died in [[Tegel]], [[Province of Brandenburg]]. His younger brother, [[Alexander von Humboldt]], was equally famous, as a naturalist and scientist. |
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| - | From the late 1980s a new school of linguistic relativity scholars have examined the effects of differences in linguistic categorization on cognition, finding broad support for weak versions of the hypothesis in experimental contexts. Effects of linguistic relativity have been shown particularly in the domain of spatial cognition and in the social use of language, but also in the field of color perception. Recent studies have shown that color perception is particularly prone to linguistic relativity effects when processed in the left brain hemisphere, suggesting that this brain half relies more on language than the right one. Currently a balanced view of linguistic relativity is espoused by most linguists holding that language influences certain kinds of cognitive processes in non-trivial ways but that other processes are better seen as subject to universal factors. Current research is focused on exploring the ways in which language influences thought and determining to what extent. The principle of linguistic relativity and the relation between language and thought has also received attention in varying academic fields from [[philosophy]] to [[psychology]] and [[anthropology]], and it has also inspired works of fiction and the invention of [[constructed language]]s. | + | |
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| - | *[[Basic Color Terms: Their Universality and Evolution]] | + | *[[Liberalism]] |
| - | *[[Eskimo words for snow]] | + | **[[Contributions to liberal theory]] |
| - | *[[Language and thought]] | + | *[[Linguistics]] |
| - | *[[Linguistic anthropology]] | + | *[[Alexander von Humboldt]] |
| - | *[[Linguistic Determinism]] | + | |
| - | *[[Relativism]] | + | |
| - | + | ||
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Friedrich Wilhelm Christian Karl Ferdinand Freiherr von Humboldt (22 June 1767 – 8 April 1835) was a German philosopher, government functionary, diplomat, and founder of Humboldt Universität. He is especially remembered as a linguist who made important contributions to the philosophy of language and to the theory and practice of education. In particular, he is widely recognized as having been the architect of the Prussian education system which was used as a model for education systems in countries such as the United States and Japan.
Humboldt was born in Potsdam, Margraviate of Brandenburg, and died in Tegel, Province of Brandenburg. His younger brother, Alexander von Humboldt, was equally famous, as a naturalist and scientist.
See also
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